Center of Attention

If you are geographically-inclined you might know that there are four points on the world that are halfway between the geographic poles, the equator, the Prime Meridian and the 180th meridian.  They are known as 45x90 points.  

Two of the points are situated in the middle of the ocean with the other two found on land.  The first point on land is situated in a remote, mountainous region of China adjacent to Mongolia and is quite difficult to visit.  

The second point on land is found here in Wisconsin.  Yup; we're the center of the world and thus the center of attention.  Located just west of Wausau in the middle of a farm field in Poniatowski is the geographic intersection of the 45 north parallel and the 90 west parallel. 

If you're passing thru the Wausau area and the weather is favorable you might want to pay a call so you can tic it off your bucket list.  Poniatowski is an exceedingly small unincorporated town named after a Polish general. 

In recent years everything was updated by volunteers and business contributors.  The area was resurveyed, a path constructed, benches placed along with signage and an official geographical marker embedded in concrete. 

So if your looking for an excuse for a road trip now you got one.  There is no restroom facility.

Learn more about it here. 

 

Tweet of the Absurd

It's Missouri imbecile.

All-aboard the Trump Train.  Next stop is Kansas....

Life At The North Pole

click on image for a closer look

 

In case you're wondering you can find Mr. and Mrs. Claus' 3-bedroom, 2-bath, log home on Zillow. Included are all of the updates which impact the Zestimate® home value.  

The cozy cabin, is a toy-lover’s paradise nestled on 25 idyllic acres. The property includes Santa’s main living quarters, a community of elf tiny homes, a state-of-the-art toy-making facility, garage with space for an all-weather sleigh and stables that board eight live-in reindeer, plus a bonus stall for red-nosed company. 

You can learn more about the Elf Village here.

Latitude

A road trip observation worth sharing.

As I worked in my garden this past few days it is an eye-opener to learn what a difference less than eleven and a half degrees of latitude makes in the world of back yard homesteading.

By all outward appearances a lot.  The corn in Hattiesburg, MS (31.33 degrees north) is above waist height.  Call it belly to shoulder height - depending.  The corn in Brussels, WI (44.73 degrees north) is ankle height.

But the proof is in the results - like these:

Fresh picked watermelon...

 click on images to enlarge

And homegrown, garden tomatoes... 

Don't tell anybody but I think I ate two fist-sized garden tomatoes at my first sitting.  

Yum!


 

A Flat Land To Cross

A 2013 survey asked Americans which state is flattest.  Roughly a third of the respondents suggested it was Kansas but the flattest state happens to be Florida - easily explained by its low coastal plains and the early sign of trouble with rising sea levels.   

Nevertheless, Illinois is flatter than Kansas.  Illinois owes its flatness to the gift of the glaciers.  The glaciers plowed it flat – obliterating every mountain, hill and piece of topography in their way.  And when the ice eventually melted in their retreat the melting ice sheet left a rich deposit of glacial till and silt loam that constitutes some of the best farmland in the world.   

I’ve taken a pile of road trips in my day and I always considered Nebraska, Kansas, Indiana and the Dakotas to be flat lands to cross.   

Nope – Illinois beats them all.  Raising a toast to road trips and global warming.

click on images to enlarge

Sunset

Last evening we were hanging out at Highcliff with Sid and his Frau along with Mennonite (and Fraulein) and additional guests.

Sunsets on Green Bay can be rather spectacular especially when the rumbling begins and a storm begins to brew-up over the waters.


That would be Peshtigo and Marinette, Wisconsin off in the distance and Michigan's Upper Peninsula center-right. 

 Some photos taken over several minutes of the storm developing.

 click on the sun to enlarge

Half Way

If you're not paying attention you might just miss this important geographical marker because it is disproportionately small - considering its significance.

The 45th parallel (45 degrees north latitude) is the  geographic midpoint between the equator and the north pole.  Which happens to be just north of Jacksonport on the peninsula.

But because the earth is slightly flattened at the poles the distance from the 45th parallel to the north pole is approximately 3117 miles and to the equator is approximately 3105 miles. 

The North Star - Polaris - is directly above the north pole.  Therefore the angle between this point and Polaris is 45 degrees.